


Cracks In The Mirror

by Nyalex (crowpsychology)



Category: OCs - Fandom
Genre: Blood, Body Horror, Fluff, Food, Gore, Implied abuse, Not Beta Read, Tags Are Hard, keeping that one for chapter ten ;)
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-07
Updated: 2021-03-11
Packaged: 2021-03-12 07:40:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,573
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29256834
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/crowpsychology/pseuds/Nyalex
Summary: All Elyssa wanted was to reunite with her sister.She didn't ask for all of this.
Kudos: 3





	1. Let Us Reunite

The instant it became morning, the girl lying in bed woke up. Not of her own volition, no, she would much rather stay in bed, but because she became increasingly aware that she was receiving a firm shake. Her bleary green eyes cracked open, and she could detect the pale rays of sunrise just barely reaching the shaded window. She heard her sister, Natalie, from beside her. “Wake up, Elyssa!” Judging by her sternness, it became clear that she was much more of a morning person than her sister.

She laughed and began to rise into a sitting position, stretching. “Nah, I don’t really feel like it,” she mumbled.

Though her eyes were closed once more, she didn’t need to see her sister in order to tell that she became angrier by the second. She huffed, and responded, “Well, I was going to make you some pancakes with my secret recipe this morning. So, you can either come down and eat them, or I’ll come back up here and shove them down your throat. But hey, that’s your decision to make.” With that… interesting conversation, she exited the room, though Elyssa noticed that she took great care to close the door quietly.

Elyssa smiled. She hadn’t seen her sister in a long time, but remembered her dark sense of humor from back when they were kids. She was almost lucky to find that her attitude hadn’t changed. Finally, she fully opened her eyes.

She was in shock for a brief moment after seeing a new location, before her memory jogged itself of her surroundings. She calmed herself down, reminding herself that she moved in with Natalie the day prior, and of course it wouldn’t look like her own room. She was left in her computer room until Natalie could make her unused “guest bedroom” possible for a human to stay in long term.

The whole room was blindingly bright, which she wasn’t used to. She remembered her old room fondly, its dark green hue a welcome sight that made it easier to sleep in at night. In contrast, this new room was covered in white, from the walls and curtains to the light beige carpet covering the hardwood flooring that was barely visible around the edges. It made her especially anxious, as she wasn’t fond of the color change, but she would be able to move into the other room eventually. The bed, being a lighter green, was the only difference, as she had bought her own personal items. Before going to bed the previous night, she switched the scratchy blankets belonging to Natalie with her own.

After finally getting out of bed, she decided that it would be good to get dressed before properly greeting Natalie. She dressed in her usual clothes, which were generally anything that she considered both comfortable and cute. She entered the bathroom, brushing her red hair, before finally looking in the mirror and considering herself ready.

She made her way down the hallway and down the stairs, entering the kitchen just below. As she reached the bottom, a delightful smell hit her. It took her back to when they were both together as kids, and their mom brought them in to make cookies. She smiled at the memory. It was almost excessively chocolatey, something she remembered Natalie enjoyed. She was at the oven, pouring a dark brown mixture from a bowl into a pan, watching them sizzle with a grin on her face.

Hearing Elyssa’s footsteps, she turned towards her. “Morning.” Her daydreaming smile was still over her face, a contrast from her behavior minutes prior. Her childlike expression didn’t grow out with age, though she supposed she was still only sixteen. However, her behavior would likely never change, and for that both were grateful. She didn’t want to be average, she wanted to be fun. Her short hair was dyed a pinkish blonde instead of her natural red, and she still wore cat pajamas from her slumber. She was almost like what a kindergartener wanted to be when they became an adult.

“Hey, Nat.” She walked closer to the oven, to Natalie, unsure if she was supposed to assist her or simply sit and wait.

“The plates are in the cabinet above the mixer,” she said, snapping her from her trance. “Can you get some for us? Oh, and the finished ones are on the plate over there. I’m just making a couple more.” She nodded towards the ever growing stack of pancakes beside her. Elyssa nodded as well, grabbing the plates and a pancake for herself. She sat down, waiting for her sister to eat. As she did, she ran over to the table, sitting across from her. “They’re hot, just for you!” The whole house smelled heavenly, like a bakery in the morning.

They both ate quietly for a while. They wanted to talk, but no one knew how to first enter. They were casual, at least tried to be, but they still hadn’t met in a long time. It wasn’t something either was used to. In the end, Natalie was the one to break the silence. “So, Elyssa! How have you been? And… How long has it been?” She counted to herself. “Six years?” It had been around that long, she supposed. Their parents had separated a while ago, and the children were separated. They didn’t see each other, and while they would have liked to, they remembered each other. Resolving to meet each other as soon as they could, Natalie was the one who created their current arrangement. After moving away to another home, their mother left Natalie in charge of her house, and she called Elyssa to stay with her.

She laughed to herself at the memory. No matter how much had gone wrong, at least they had both kept their promise to each other. “I think so, it could have been longer. I’m a little surprised you remember me.”

Annoyed by her hypocrisy, Natalie butted in, “Hey, you remember me!” It didn’t take much for her to be annoyed, but this was understandable.

“You were younger than me. You were only eight, and I was twelve.” She smiled slyly. “And if we’re being honest, you didn’t exactly have the best memory back then.”

Natalie sighed wistfully. “I was too focused on stories to pay attention to much of anything back then.” She paused for a moment, before adding with a chuckle, “Well, now that I think about it, I’m more focused on stories now than I was then.”

Elyssa nodded. “Same. I can’t focus on that much anymore because of my writing. I probably won’t be able to for a while, but I guess I’ll have to chill out for college.” She tried to remain happy for her, but the quietness in her voice betrayed her. Trying to bring the topic away, she asked, “Anyway, how’s your life here?”

“Turning it back to me, huh? Well, if you  _ must _ know,” she added an exaggerated eye roll, immediately followed by a smile. “I work at a cafe part time, when I’m not at school. I made some suggestions they liked and got added to the menu, which makes me happy. They like my cupcakes a lot, and I must humbly admit that they’re pretty good!” She finished her breakfast, before adding, “They look like cats. Maybe I can make you some fresh ones later, if you want?” She looked at her hopefully. All she wanted was to impress her sister.

Elyssa didn’t notice this. Instead, she was flattered by the offer, but said, “I don’t want you to do anything you don’t want to. I’m living here rent-free, I should be cooking for  _ you _ , if anything.”

“Nah,” she responded. “I like making them, and I need practice. I’m not perfect, and I definitely need to keep working to improve, but I definitely like doing it. The only way to get better is with practice.”

Finally, Elyssa got the message. “Well, if that’s the case, then I’d be happy to try anything you’re willing to offer.”

Natalie looked back. “Thanks, Lys, but is this your way of saying, ‘thank you, Lord Natalie, for this humble offering, I am forever in your debt?’” Both laughed at her off-putting humor for a moment, before finally returning to the main topic of their conversation. “Anyway, back to you. How are you?   


She thought of the best way to summarize the past six years into a concise statement, and decided to talk as she thought. “Well, high school was awful, and unfortunately I guess you know that now.” Natalie made a face, and she laughed and continued. “I published a book about a year ago, it got authorized pretty quickly.” Noticing Natalie’s now-stunned face, she added, “What? I just got lucky and was dedicated enough to keep at it.”

She wasn’t entirely sure what she was so shocked about. She didn’t think it was that good, though Natalie hadn’t read it yet. She didn’t know. “You wrote a book? I read some of your shorts online, but I didn’t know you actually got to publish one.”

Elyssa thought for a second. “I just got the nerve, I guess. Pretty recently, I just submitted it to a few publishers and they liked it, so it was authorized. It’s called Symbols in the Light. But it isn’t really that good,” she shrugged it off. “I’m kinda surprised they even published it, but people seem to like it. Guess I’m proud of that, it’s the way I’m gonna pay for college.”

Natalie nodded sadly. She understood that Elyssa had some pretty good scholarships, they talked about that over the phone, but even still she needed to pay over ten thousand dollars each year. Though she was excited for college in four years, she feared it as much as she desired it for that reason alone. “Unfortunate.” She grabbed her plate and brought it to the sink. “I just have to get dressed, but after that do you wanna go out?”

“Sure,” said Elyssa. “Nat’s tour of the town… It should be fun!” She grabbed her shoes and waited in the living room.

the fires rage hot and the documents burn


	2. Doctor, Doctor

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This wasn't what he expected to find, but he was almost able to accept it.
> 
> tw// blood, implied gore, implied abuse

The doctor had a hard time breathing as he looked at his notes. The scattered papers in front of him didn’t quite align, and the symptoms didn’t make sense when compared to one another. Truly, he had no idea what could have caused the girl’s troubles, unless there were more illnesses than he could count. He looked over the shifting pile, scanning every page for a single error, or for a change that would cause everything to make sense. He would never find one, of course. This wasn’t an ordinary, faultless illness. It was something far more sinister than he first believed, though at the time he had no idea what he was getting into.

  
He flinched as he grabbed a folder from his desk, claiming one of her sicknesses was simply shortness of breath. That wasn’t right, couldn’t be. He was thrown into a violent flashback of the night before, lying awake listening to the sound that echoed throughout the hallways as though they were caverns. Her screams were agonizing, and her skin was pale as freshly fallen snow, he almost couldn’t help but wonder if there was any blood in her at all. It could never have just been shortness of breath, even from the beginning. He remembered how the screaming stopped for only a moment when she needed to breathe, and her voice was always ragged in the morning. She was short of breath, but that couldn’t be the only symptom.

  
He shivered, trying his hardest to escape from the awful memories. It wasn’t like this was the first time, and it certainly wouldn’t be the last, but even the thought of all the blood made him even more nauseous. He almost wished he couldn’t remember, but knew he had to remember everything he saw in prayer for a treatment, a diagnosis, anything that could help her. Silently, he got up and began to pace through the small room that was now his, as though he were a tiger in a cage. Maybe, just maybe he would someday forget what he saw, but for now he had to find a solution, he had to. But he knew there was no correlation…

  
He stopped in place, a realization dawning on him.He turned back towards his desk, towards the research he had done on her mystery illness that eluded him so. He looked at every word, understanding none. There was no correlation, unless everything he was told was a lie.

  
It almost made sense, a cruel joke played on him by the gods. He needed money so badly to pay for his school expenses, so much so that he was willing even to go here, and it only made sense that it would be near-impossible to leave. A consequence for his greed. He knew it couldn’t just be a coincidence, anything half-remembered by staff, or… him. He didn’t know how much the leader of the building knew about this, or how much he was behind. What he did know was that something was horribly wrong with this establishment, and though he wanted no part of it there was no way to leave. It took every fiber of his being for him not to yell, to alert anyone at the late hour, and all he could do was lay down.

  
With a jolt, the same noise that had been sounding through the establishment for weeks came from the hallway next to his. Screams of pure agony from the girl he had come to know, almost even friends with if it wasn’t for him. But there was nothing he could do without risking his own life. Instead, he looked to the clock on the wall, one of the few features his otherwise blank room had. He said he would be with her soon. Was he there yet?

  
If he was, then why did he think she was screaming louder than before?

  
He just closed his eyes and sighed. All motivation to finally discover the solution to her problems was gone as soon as it had come. There was nothing he could do. Not for now, she wasn’t even under his jurisdiction. With that, he went to bed, trying his hardest to ignore the sounds that were slowly driving him mad.

4/05/2004  
I don’t have many notes for today, unfortunately. I don’t need them, and don't think I ever will anymore. Everything that happened today will stay with me for the rest of my life.

  
I did hear A talking to [REDACTED] about something interesting earlier, though. Did you know that a Markov Chain is the process for selecting outcomes based on previous events? It sounds strange, but I should trust A after everything they’ve seen. I didn’t know that’s what it was called, maybe it’s like natural selection.

  
I think some strange stuff is happening here, but I can’t write it down. [REDACTED] could break into my room and read this. He might be doing it already, and I would never know. It's a terrifying thought, but I have to at least consider it.

  
Anyway, that’s all I have to say for now, journal. See you tomorrow, probably.

  
-Shawn (who will think of a better name eventually.)

**Author's Note:**

> WOWIE that was a thing!!!  
> i'm enjoying myself  
> please give constructive criticism, i wanna improve :)


End file.
